The Bermuda Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (BSAP) initiative was launched by Environment Minister Terry Lister yesterday, and he also declared 2001 the "Year of Biodiversity awareness''.

Mr. Lister said: "Bermuda has a rich and diverse natural heritage, which is of tremendous importance to the Island, ecologically, socially, economically and culturally, as well as aesthetically.'' He continued: "The BSAP aims to address the widely recognised need for a co-ordinated community-based plan of action to conserve Bermuda's rich, but increasingly threatened biodiversity.'' Guidance for the BSAP comes from a steering committee composed of representatives of Government, environmental non-governmental organisations (NGO's) and the business community.

And to help launch the initiative, Dr. Wolfgang Sterrer, Curator of the Bermuda Natural History Museum was joined by newly appointed steering committee member Andrew Vaucrosson to speak at the weekly meeting of the Hamilton Rotary Club.

Dr. Sterrer spoke about conserving the Island's biodiversity and examined the conflict between the exploitation versus the safeguarding of "nature's capital.'' The Bermuda Biodiversity Project was started at the Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo four years ago to find out exactly what lived in, on and around the Island.

Because of its small size and long history of research, Bermuda is one of the best studied environments on Earth.

Dr. Sterrer said: "From the 3,500 books and papers that have been published about the Island's natural history, we can glean at least approximate numbers for Bermuda's current species diversity: 4,500 marine plants and animals, 1,100 insects and spiders, 350 birds, 750 fungi, and 350 native (plus some 900 introduced) land plants.'' He added: "The total of some 8,000 species is likely to grow as we probe more hidden crevices in the reefs and the deep sea, and capture ever smaller and elusive creatures.'' He said that only about 200 species were endemic, including the fabled cahow, the skink, the cedar and the olivewood tree and at least 30 species of crustaceans found exclusively in Bermuda's labyrinth of drowned caves.

Yet of these 200 endemics, at least 25 are now believed extinct, including the Bermuda cicada and three species of small land snails which, only 40 years ago, biologist Stephen J. Gould celebrated as Bermuda's equivalent of Darwin's finches in the Galapagos Islands.

Dr. Sterrer said he hoped the Action Plan would create a forum for the debate on biodiversity conservation, which would require a framework for negotiation, mediation and consensus-building on priorities, and how ecological and economic choices could be balanced.

He also noted that once reached, consensus actions must be carried out to initiate biodiversity conservation. And he added that this conservation needs to be secured into the future.

The importance of this initiative is reflected in financial support from the UK Government's Darwin Initiative, which funds worldwide work to safeguard biological diversity, as well as support from the Bermuda Government and Zoological Society.

In closing, Dr. Sterrer said: "I cannot think of a better motto for the happy marriage of economic and ecological goals that I envision will be the outcome than philosopher Francis Bacon's humble insight that `Nature to be commanded must be obeyed'.'' Terry Lister ENVIRONMENT ENV